We’re back this week to talk about the latest Hunger Games movie, The Ballad of Songbirds and Snakes. Topics include our relationship with the famous dystopian franchise, how the movie compares to the book, why we find prequels and villain protagonists compelling, and a detour through Enlightenment philosophy. Other Media Mentioned: Hannibal (2013-2015) The Silence of the Lambs (1991) Gods of the Wyrdwood by R.J. Barker Anatomy of a Fall dir. Justine Triet A Murder at the End of the World (2023) True Detective: Night Country We Could Be So Good by Cat Sebastian Gregor the Overlander by Suzanne Collins Coriolanus by William Shakespeare West Side Story (2021) dir. Steven Spielberg Leviathan by Thomas Hobbes Second Treatise of Government by John Locke The Social Contract by Jean-Jacques Rousseau Frankenstein by Mary Shelley “Silver Springs” by Fleetwood Mac Wicked (2024) dir. John M. Chu Saltburn (2023) dir. Emerald Fennell  Content warnings: Discussions of death, violence, hanging, cannibalism and fascism